The present disclosure, in some embodiments thereof, relates to vehicle driver detection systems and, more specifically, but not exclusively, to methods and systems of detecting driver inattentiveness, for instance due to drowsiness, and alerting the driver of a vehicle to increase her or his alertness.
One of the most dangerous aspects of long-distance driving is when a driver loses attentiveness, for instance begins dozing off while driving. Drivers, especially when driving alone, have a hard time preventing themselves from beginning to fall asleep which can result in dangerous vehicle crashes. Driver inattentiveness detection systems are currently based on the vehicle's motions. For example, some vehicles' attached systems and onboard circuits monitor jerkiness of a vehicle to estimate inattentiveness of the driver and alert the driver accordingly.
Reference is now made to FIG. 1, which is Diagram 100 presenting fatigue crash data provided by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Diagram 100 illustrates why the hours of service are important by outlining the relationship between number of hours driven and the percent of crashes related to driver fatigue. As shown, diagram 100 illustrates how crashes due to fatigue increase exponentially with duration of a trip.
If driver inattentiveness is accurately detected, then many types of alerts may be used which are useful for a driver to prevent accidents and wake them up. One dimensional tracking, via steering alone may be inaccurate as it may be confused with the regular swerving of driving, such as moving in and out of lanes frequently.